Kenya’s vibrant technology sector is known for its innovations in software. The successes of M-PESA, a widely used mobile money transfer platform, and Ushahidi, a global crowdsourcing mapping app, has drawn international attention to the Kenyan startup scene. Supporting the startup scene are a number of tech hubs, incubators, and accelerators.

Software, however, can only be as innovative as the hardware it runs on. A growing network of makerspaces are training Kenyan innovators in the knowledge and skills to manufacture disruptive hardware solutions. What is the story of makerspaces in Kenya? What supports are available for hardware-based innovators? How effective are these makerspaces at promoting innovation? What methods are innovators using to share and protect their ideas?

Recently, one of the local dailies had the following headline emblazoned upon it, “Tycoon gifted Sh5bn mobile phone license…” This story related to Communications Authority of Kenya (CA) granting a Network Facilities Provider Tier 1 License to Jamii Telecommunications Limited (JTL). The holder of this license is permitted to build and commercially operate telecommunication/electronic communications systems. According to media reports however, the amount paid by JTL was well below the full value of the license (stated by the press to be 5 billion Kenya Shillings). The media report goes on to relate that the amount that JTL paid was only 100,000 Kenya Shillings.

The introduction of an e-payment system for the public service vehicles (PSVs) in the transport sector has been an idea embraced by some, for reasons that implementation of such a system could greatly help regulate the matatu industry, including eliminating corruption and facilitating collection of taxes. However, others have been opposed to a cashless system for reasons such as loss of income to matatu crews since no e-ticketing system would be able to take into consideration the informal and ad-hoc revenue-share arrangements between the PSV owners and their crews.

In earlier posts here and here, we explained how Music Copyright Society of Kenya (MCSK) appears to be engaged in an all-out war against Kenya Copyright Board (KECOBO) and Music Publishers Association of Kenya (MPAKE). Readers will recall that early this year KECOBO declined to renew MCSK’s registration as a collecting society and instead decided to register MPAKE as a collecting society, presumably in the place of MCSK. Since then, MCSK has obtained several court orders (the latest coming from the High Court in Kakamega dated 5th April 2017) to enable it to continue its operations as a collecting society. In the latest turn of events, KECOBO has now obtained two court orders dated 31st May 2017 (pictured above) barring MCSK from collecting royalties from the public as well as publishing any information insinuating that it is duly licensed as a collecting society for the year 2017 pending hearing of the suit.